Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-09-01
ABOUT HOUSEWORK.

beyond most nationalities - that is, in
greater numbers. The strong-brained,
executive woman who is known to
public life, justly and we'll known for
excellence in any department of sci
ence, art or literature, is exceptional
everywhere. and with her. be she
English, Scotch, French, American
or any other race, We do nst have to
do when we speak of the special intel
ligence of the American woman.
But of the large number of women
who help to make up the American
people probably the great majority
read and think and act with more or
less intelligence.
Yet the problem how to become o
strong race is still unsolved, and until
1t is made the subject of more extern
sive thought and research and i'm
portance among thinking women it
must stay so.
Undoubtedly climatic influence has
much to do with our extreme nervous,
highly-strung temperaments. Our va
riableness of weather, from intensely
hot to very cold, from wet to dry. from
calm languor of atmosphere to high
and gusty winds must produce some
effect upon the physical constitution of
those who are subjected to these
changes. And vast amount of good
sense and knowledge is required to so
adapt the clothing and MODES of life
TO la orr
caught unaware and unprepared.
But habits of life have a great deal
to do with race healthfulness. Work
of various kinds in which women en-
gage have tendencies to make them
strong or otherwise. Too often it is
otherwise and not strong.
As worker woman needs short in
tervals of work and then a time for
rest. / am not comparing her working
power with that of man. They ought
not to be compared as they frequently
are to the prejudice of woman. When
a certain salary is affixed to piece Of
work and paid to whoever does it, ire
spective of sex, women will have less
cause to complain of injustice than they
sometimes have at present.
But to compel, or to think, woman
can work just as man works is to eN-
pect David to wear Saurs armor. In
her own way she does well enough. If
all women did all they were fully capa-
BILE of. Notwithstanding the disability
of being women, and not men, in the
battling force of this world, there
would be revolution of affairs at
once.
But some women will utterly disre-
gard every known hygienic law. then
wonder why women can't be strong.
They eat badly, they sleep too little or
too much, they keep irregular hours,
they work too long at one thing. they
take too little exercise or too much at
one time, they breathe bad air. they
dress too thinly, wear tight corsets,
badly fitting shoes. heavy dresses. and
then wonder that they are not strong.
Some women can do away with all,
or most of these evils at once by tax
ing proper heed to their ways. Others
can not so readily mend their lives.
But no employment women engage
in has in it more of the elements of
healthful living than homework.
Ordinarily speaking, it is not a matter
of particular commiseration when a
woman is too poor to keep servant
and must do large share of her own
work. She finds in it healthful activ-
ity for both body and mind. And if
her family is not unreasonably large.
or she suffering from weakness which
makes the. actual work too much for
her strength, she ought to find in it
happiness and strength.
Probably the very largest number of
families do their own work in America,
and there is some intelligence among
almost the poorest and meanest. And
with our form of Government it viii
be an evil day when this ceases to be
the case.
The run of sloppy shop-work. where
ill-titting. poorly-sewed clothing is
gotten up at les>than cost of making,
will be over when women refuse To
buy, wear or make such clothing, and
turn to the domestic life in their own,
or some one else's kitchen. in prefer
cnce to doing such work at the mere
pittance given for it.
Homework is the one employment
among women seemingly most is dis
repute. yet it is the one thing which
most women can do, and do we'll if
they will. The variety of occupation,
the activity of muscle required, the
regular hours usually kept and the
mental acumen needed to make people
, comfortable. all tend to make the life
of the houseworker a strong and
healthful one.
Yet women don't like to do it
think life burden if they are COM
PEELED to drudge in the kitchen, and
homes and clearinghouse suffer in
consequence.
Would that American women A a